Highlights: Charleston, May 2025

The 45th ISASC Convention was held May 1 through May 4 in Charleston, South Carolina. The excitement was evident as members arrived to share the camaraderie and good times they have come to anticipate at these gatherings. This time was no exception. The weekend proved beyond measure to be another memorable “Scalies” reunion.

Things kicked off with a Thursday evening dinner in Old Town Charleston at the Ruby Royale restaurant. Diners had a choice of three entrees, giving everyone the chance to be fully satisfied. It was a relaxing evening with plenty of time to catch up with old friends and meet new ones.

Friday started bright and early as we boarded the bus enroute to the home of Steve and Rita G. Steve is a long-time member who has accumulated scales for many years. It was fun to see his wonderful collection, with most of his scales, if not all, in pristine condition.

It turned out there was a lot more to see than scales. Most of us were very surprised to learn that Rita is an exceptionally accomplished artist. Throughout the house hung many of her original paintings of birds and flowers with a few ocean landscapes thrown in. When you had hit your saturation point of looking at scales, you could enjoy Rita’s art for a while and vice versa. Many of us spent the time at their house going back and forth between the two displays. It was a delightful morning made better by the huge spread of tempting treats on the kitchen island accompanied by fresh coffee and tea.

All too soon it was time to get back on the bus and head for lunch, again in Old Town Charleston, at the High Cotton restaurant. In our private dining room we were regaled with a lavish brunch including she-crab soup, a regional favorite which originated in Charleston in the early 1900s when President Taft was served dinner at the home of the city’s mayor.

But the day was not done. We had about an hour to explore Old Town and the City Market before meeting up to board carriages drawn by Belgian draft horses. For the next hour riding in these carriages, we learned about the long history of Charleston which was founded in 1670 and was initially called Charles Town.

Besides the main avenues, the tour included many of the narrower tree-lined streets with beautiful historic mansions offering a glimpse of their prized gardens. Friday evening was the traditional get-together and album sharing. Admittedly, the busy day caught up with us as most retired on the early side.

Steve G. was first up for the Saturday morning programs. Once at the podium, he started reaching into his jacket pocket. Out came four or five very small postal spring and pendulum scales. Steve said that anytime he went into an antique shop when he first started collecting, he only saw the big scales. He went on to explain it was only after ISASC co-founder Bob Stein pulled him aside and gave him a collecting tip that he started looking in the glass cases in the shops which held the smaller items.

That is how he found many of his extensive collection of these small postals. Over the course of his presentation he kept pulling scales out of different pockets. By the time he finished he had shown around 20 scales. All were small enough to be concealed on his person.

As an introduction to his presentation The Story of a Georgian Weight, Don L. gave a brief general overview of these weights and how to identify them. Only then did he reveal the “crown jewel” of his collection of Georgian weights. It is a George II 56 pound weight bearing the inscription "The Town and County of Kingston upon Hull, M Francis Pryme, Mayor 1749." He recounted a short history of the Pryme family in England and showed where Francis Pryme had indeed been the mayor of Kingston upon Hull that year. Don led a discussion on his yet-to-be-answered questions about this weight, primarily was it made for the mayor or for the city.

Saturday afternoon was taken up with the Silent Auction and Let’s make a Deal. There was enough of a variety of items for sale that most everyone left with at least one new acquisition and many had several that went out the door with them. Completing the day was the gala reception and banquet where Convention Chairman Greg H. gifted our hosts, Steve and Rita, with a plaque thanking them for all their efforts in making this such a terrific weekend.

Show and Tell was on the agenda for Sunday morning. Don L. started by giving a history of the Founders’ Company which began in London in the 1300s as one of the early medieval guilds formed by members of various trades. Founders were workers in brass and brass alloys or tinplate producing small cast articles such as candlesticks. Don then showed a one pound brass disc weight which was given as a commentative souvenir to members of the company’s board of directors. Since only twelve of these were made, Don feels very fortunate to have one in his collection.

Next up was Steve B. who entertained us with a humorous tale of picking up and bringing two analytical balances back from England. He had purchased them some time ago from sellers in England who did not want to ship them because of their extreme fragility. Steve explained why these two balances were so special to him, causing him to conclude that he needed these in his collection no matter what the cost. If it took a trip to England to pick up the scales and pack them himself to bring back as checked luggage, then that was what he would do. His wife, Karen, was not as convinced, but she went along with what she considered Steve’s harebrained plan. The scales eventually came to reside at their home in Delaware, but not without some comical twists and bumps along the way.

Bill B. explained he likes homemade scales and showed us one of his favorites. It is a simple postal made from Masonite and older plywood with a Jamaican coin at the end of its pendulum. He also brought a very small pocket spring scale marked Gilfillan Souvenir. Next Steve G. shared his Troemner solder scale, followed by Greg M. who presented a special brass steelyard scale marked L. STEPHENSON & CO BOSTON.

Judy S. finished out the morning presentations showing a postal scale that she and Eric had recently acquired. It is an over/under scale that was used in the British post office to check if a letter had sufficient postage. There is no marker’s name but the scales are clearly marked GPO. With a bit more research it turns out these are fairly rare scales. However, Judy was able to locate four other members who have the same scale.

The interesting sidenote about these is in the post office they were fastened to a rail between two workers allowing the scale to be used by both persons. In being attached this way the bottom of the scale has a brass horseshoe-shaped mounting bracket. So, when the post office removed these scales and others acquired them, each was mounted in a different way on a different shaped wood base.

Not long after acquiring this scale, Judy and Eric acquired a second one. Only with the second one, it looks like whoever had it expended a lot of elbow grease to hammer the horseshoe bracket in an attempt to flatten it with a less-than-perfect result. Perhaps whoever undertook this effort didn’t understand the purpose of the unusual shaped bracket for mounting.

The business meeting for all members finished up the morning and the convention concluded with the farewell luncheon. Those who were leaving said their goodbyes with promises to see everyone at next year’s gathering.

The 2026 convention will be held in May in the Chicago area. There will be an added spark of excitement as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of ISASC. Hosts Allan and Aviva R., Bill and Jan B. and Don and Donna S. are planning some special treats for us to commemorate this milestone. Regular attendees and first timers are always welcomed. So mark your calendar for next May to make Chicago your kind of town. See ya there!